Spring-actuated cue

ABSTRACT

A spring-actuated cue for billiards, pool, and the like, having an infinitely adjustable stroke force comprises a hollow, tubular stock, a spring-actuated stick member slidably disposed within the tubular stock, and a trigger means comprising a trigger body member having a central bore for slidably receiving the stick member and a grip means movably mounted on the trigger body member for frictionally and releasably engaging the stick member around the periphery thereof at at least two locations situated more than pi 12 radians apart.

United States Patent [191 Evans 1451 Jan. 16, 1973 1 1 SPRING-ACTUATED CUE 3,246,895 4/1966 Traill ..273/69 Inventor: ou s a s Route 3, M Baley et al 140, Box South Haven, FORE N TENTS OR APPLICATIONS Mich. 49090 [G PA 137,075 5/1950 Australia ..l24/37 Wed 8, 1971 1,410,146 7 1965 France ..124 37 [21] Appl. No.: 205,945

Primary Examiner-Anton O. Oechsle Assistant ExaminerRichard J. Apley 52 U.S. (:1 ..273/69, 124/38 hen e1 a1,

51 int. (:1. ..A63d 15/08 [58] Field of Search ..43/6; 124/16, 30, 31, 37, 38; [57] ABSTRACT 273/69,ll3,ll8, 119,123,129

A spring-actuated cue for b1lliards, pool, and the l1ke, [56] Referen Cit d having an infinitely adjustable stroke force comprises a hollow, tubular stock, a spring-actuated stick UNITED STATES PATENTS member slidably disposed within the tubular stock, 836,303 11/1906 Christensen ..124 37 ux trigger means a 966,665 8/1910 Deppen 124/37 UX having a central bore for slidably receiving the stlck 1,054,830 3 1913 Crabb ..273/69 member and a grip means mmably mmmted the 1,157,909 10 1915 Teague ..273/69 trigger y member for frictionally and releasably 1,235,613 8/1917 Vandergrift.... ..124/37 UX engaging the stick member around the periphery RMidland .Ll24/37X thereof at at least two locations situated more than artin ..l24/37 X 12 d 1 2,779,323 l/1957 Thomsen. .....l24/37 X 77 [a ans apa 2,891,795 6/1959 Glintz ..l24/37 UX 6 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures i 30 r 33 27 219 7 -7 2 3 -(%4' 1 L J/ 32 26 25 /5 I7 42 l3 /4 SPRING-ACTUATED CUE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a spring-actuated cue for playing billiards, pool, and similar games. The cue utilizes a spring means to provide a uniform and reproducible stroke force thereby obviating the necessity for the player to manually control the length and the intensity of the stroke in each instance.

Spring-actuated cues of this general type are known and are illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 3,246,895 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,805. However, with such heretofore known spring-actuated cues it is not possible to infinitely adjust the stroke force because the tension or compression of the actuating spring can be set only at certain specific, predetermined values. Moreover, relatively complex actuating and trigger assembly mechanisms have to be utilized which, in turn, increase the cost of the ultimate product.

It is an object of the present invention to obviate the aforementioned shortcomings of spring-actuated cues.

It is a further object to provide a spring-actuated cue the stroke force of which is infinitely yet reproducibly adjustable.

Still other objects of this invention will readily present themselves to one skilled in the art upon reference to the accompanying specification, the draw ing, and the claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention contemplates a spring-actuated one which comprises a hollow, tubular stock, a spring-actuated stick member slidably disposed within the tubular stock, and a trigger means fixed within the tubular stock comprising a trigger body member having a central bore slidably receiving the stick member, a trigger grip means movably mounted on the trigger body member frictionally and releasably engaging the stick member around the periphery thereof at at least two locations situated more than 1'r/2 radians apart, and a trigger release means operably engaging the trigger grip means for releasing the grip means from engagement with the stick member.

Preferably, the stick member is provided with a compression spring coiled about an intermediate portion of the stick member and abutting against the trigger body member and with a cushion spring coiled about the stick member near the inner end thereof. The preferred trigger means comprises a trigger body member provided with a radial recess and a grip means which is a yoke slidably mounted within the recess and provided with a pair of converging legs which receive the stick member therebetween.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings,

FIG. 1 is a side view of the spring-actuated cue of this invention with a portion of the stock broken away to show interior detail;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the stick member, partially in section, and the stick member being in a retracted position;

' FIG. 3 is an exploded isometric view of the trigger means for the spring-actuated cue of this invention;

FIG. 4 is an end view of the trigger grip means taken along line lV IV in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is an end view similar to that of FIG. 4 and showing another embodiment of a trigger grip means.

' DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, spring-actuated cue 10 comprises hollow, tubular stock 1 1 having open end 12 and closed end 13, usually closed by elastic bumper 14, a butt plate, or the like. Stick member 15 is provided with ball engaging tip 16 and is slidably disposed within tubular stock 1 1.

Trigger body member 17 is fixedly mounted within tubular stock 11 and is provided with central bore 18 (FIG. 3) which is coaxial with tubular stock 11 and which slidably receives therein stick member 15. Mounting of trigger body member 17 within tubular stock 11 is achieved by machine screws 19, 20, and 21, provided with washers 22, 23, and 24, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 2, stick member 15 is provided with first shoulder 25, usually in the form of sleeve 26 made of flexible tubing which can be slipped over stick member 15, and with second shoulder 27 at about the inner end of stick member 15. Usually shoulder 27 is in the form of a disc secured to the inner end of stick member 15 by means of a fastener such as machine screw 28.

Compression spring 29 is helically wound about stick member 15 and is situated between shoulder 25 and trigger body member 17. When stick member 15 is in retracted position as shown in FIG. 2, compression spring 29 abuts against shoulder 25 and trigger body member 17 and is compressed therebetween. It may be desirable for efficient functioning of the cue to maintain spring 29 under slight compression also when stick member 15 is in extended position (FIG. 1) in which event spring 29 will abut shoulder 25 and trigger body member 17 at all times. This is not essential, however. Annular member 30 is optional and serves to guide stick member 15 within tubular stock 1 1.

If desired, the outer end of stick member 15, projecting outwardly through open end 12 of tubular stock 11, can be provided with longitudinally-spaced markings such as shooting gauges 31 and 32 which indicate the degree of compression for spring 29 and thus the available stroke force. Also, the regions between such markings can be color-coded for ready reference, if desired. For example, the region between ball engaging tip 16 and gauge 31 can be red to indicate a high degree of compression; the region between gauges 31 and 32 can be black to indicate an intermediate degree of compression, etc.

A trigger grip means such as yoke 33 having converging legs 34 and 35, bent at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of stick member 15, is slidably mounted on trigger body member 17 in radial recess 37 (FIGS. 3 and 4). Stick member 15 is received between converging legs 34 and 35 and is frictionally but releasably engaged around the periphery thereof by yoke 33 at locations A, B, and C, at least two of these locations being more than of an arc, i.e., 1r/2 radians, apart. Yoke 33 is urged toward engagement with stick member 15 by spring 45 which is maintained under compression between yoke 33 and trigger body member 17. Engagement of yoke 33 can be released by depressing trigger button or actuator 38 which is maintained in a normally extended position, i.e., not bearing against yoke 33, by compression spring 39 which abuts against the cap underside of trigger actuator 38 and washer 40.

In order to mitigate the impact of stick member as it is released from a retracted position and reaches a fully extended position after delivering an impulse to a ball, or when stick member 15 is released accidentally, cushion spring 41 is provided coiled about stick member 15 near the inner end thereof. When stick member 15 is in extended position, cushion spring 41 abuts shoulder 27 at one end and the other end can abut either yoke 33 or an auxiliary abutment such as bifurcated abutment member 42 interposed between cushion spring 41 and yoke 33 for that purpose. Bifurcated abutment member 42 can be conveniently affixed to trigger body member 17 in order to facilitate assembly of spring-actuated cue l0. Cushion spring can slide freely on stick member 15 or can be anchored at the inner end thereof, for example, by means of screw 28.

In another embodiment of this invention, shown in F IG. 5, the trigger grip means comprises hoop 43 about stick member 15 and at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis thereof. Hoop 43 is provided with elongated member or tongue 44 fixedly attached to hoop 43 and slidably mounted in radial recess 37 of trigger body member 17 in a manner similar to that for yoke 33. Hoop 43 is also urged into frictional engagement with the periphery of stick member 15 by means of a spring similar to spring 45 for yoke 33 and engages stick member 15 at locations D and E which are about 1r radians apart.

in use, stick member 15 is pushed back into hollow, tubular stock 11 in any convenient manner to obtain the desired retraction and thus the desired compression of spring 29. The action of the trigger grip means is such that stick member 15 will be automati-cally retained in any retracted position thereby permitting the player to select any desired stroke force within the operational limits of the cue itself. Thereafter the player can concentrate on aiming the cue in the desired direction against the ball and can release stick member 15 by depressing actuator 38.

The foregoing specification and the drawing are intended as illustrative and are not to be construed as limiting. Still other variations and arrangements of parts within the spirit and scope of this invention will readily present themselves to one skilled in the art.

lclaim:

1. A spring-actuated cue including a hollow, tubular stock having a closed end and an open end;

a spring-actuated stick member slidably disposed within the tubular stock; and

a trigger means fixedly mounted within the tubular stock and comprising a trigger body member having a central bore for slidably receiving the stick member, a trigger grip means movably mounted on the body member frictionally and releasably engaging the stick member around the periphery thereof at at least two locations situated more than 1r/2 radians apart, and a trigger release means operably engaging the grip means for releasing the grip means from engagement with the stick member.

2. A sprin -actuated cue including a hollow, ubular stock having a closed end and an open end;

a trigger body member having a central bore coaxial with the tubular stock fixedly mounted within the tubular stock; stick member having an inner end and an outer end, and provided with a first shoulder means at an intermediate longitudinal position on the stick member and with a second shoulder means at about the inner end of the stick member, said stick member being slidably received in the tubular stock and within the central bore of the trigger body member so that the outer end of the stick member projects through the open end of the tubular stock;

compression spring coiled about said stick member, abutting against said second shoulder and against the trigger body member when the stick member is in a retracted position;

a cushion spring coiled about said stick member near the inner end thereof and abutting against said second shoulder when the stick member is in an extended position;

a trigger grip means movably mounted on the trigger body member for frictionally and releasably engaging the stick member around the periphery thereof at at least two locations situated more than 1r/2 radians apart; and

trigger release means operably engaging the grip means to release the grip means from frictional engagement with the stick member.

3. The spring-actuated cue of claim 1 wherein a bifurcated abutment member for engaging the cushion spring when the stick member is in an extended position is mounted on the trigger body member projecting inwardly therefrom toward the closed end of the tubular stock and situated between the bifurcated grip means and the cushion spring.

4. The spring-actuated cue of claim 1 wherein the outer end of the stick member projecting through the open end of the tubular stock is provided with longitudinally-spaced markings indicating the degree of compression for the compression spring.

5. The spring-actuated cue of clam 1 wherein the trigger body member is provided with a radial recess; wherein the grip means is a yoke slidably mounted within the radial recess, provided with a pair of converging legs, and receiving the stick member between said legs; and wherein the yoke is spring-biased toward engage-ment with said stick member.

6. The spring-actuated cue of claim 1 wherein the trigger body member is provided with a radial recess; wherein the grip means is a hoop surrounding said stick member and having an elongated member fixedly attached to the hoop and slidably mounted within the radial recess; and wherein the hoop is spring biased toward engagement with said stick member. 

1. A spring-actuated cue including a hollow, tubular stock having a closed end and an open end; a spring-actuated stick member slidably disposed within the tubular stock; and a trigger means fixedly mounted within the tubular stock and comprising a trigger body member having a central bore for slidably receiving the stick member, a trigger grip means movably mounted on the body member frictionally and releasably engaging the stick member around the periphery thereof at at least two locations situated more than pi /2 radians apart, and a trigger release means operably engaging the grip means for releasing the grip means from engagement with the stick member.
 2. A spring-actuated cue including a hollow, tubular stock having a closed end and an open end; a trigger body member having a central bore coaxial with the tubular stock fixedly mounted within the tubular stock; a stick member having an inner end and an outer end, and provided with a first shoulder means at an intermediate longitudinal position on the stick member and with a second shoulder means at about the inner end of the stick member, said stick member being slidably received in the tubular stock and within the central bore of the trigger body member so that the outer end of the stick member projects through the open end of the tubular stock; a compression spring coiled about said stick member, abutting against said second shoulder and against the trigger body member when the stick member is in a retracted position; a cushion spring coiled about said stick member near the inner end thereof and abutting against said second shoulder when the stick member is in an extended position; a trigger grip means movably mounted on the trigger body member for frictionally and releasably engaging the stick member around the periphery thereOf at at least two locations situated more than pi /2 radians apart; and trigger release means operably engaging the grip means to release the grip means from frictional engagement with the stick member.
 3. The spring-actuated cue of claim 1 wherein a bifurcated abutment member for engaging the cushion spring when the stick member is in an extended position is mounted on the trigger body member projecting inwardly therefrom toward the closed end of the tubular stock and situated between the bifurcated grip means and the cushion spring.
 4. The spring-actuated cue of claim 1 wherein the outer end of the stick member projecting through the open end of the tubular stock is provided with longitudinally-spaced markings indicating the degree of compression for the compression spring.
 5. The spring-actuated cue of clam 1 wherein the trigger body member is provided with a radial recess; wherein the grip means is a yoke slidably mounted within the radial recess, provided with a pair of converging legs, and receiving the stick member between said legs; and wherein the yoke is spring-biased toward engage-ment with said stick member.
 6. The spring-actuated cue of claim 1 wherein the trigger body member is provided with a radial recess; wherein the grip means is a hoop surrounding said stick member and having an elongated member fixedly attached to the hoop and slidably mounted within the radial recess; and wherein the hoop is spring-biased toward engagement with said stick member. 